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> I agree with the article, but to be fair, all software aims to simplify a task. So calling a procedure "simple" is usually done in comparison with what used t
by BossingAround 3y ago
> I agree with the article, but to be fair, all software aims to simplify a task. So calling a procedure "simple" is usually done in comparison with what used to be more difficult/complicated.
It follows that calling anything "simple" is redundant. Either it's implied (i.e. "of course it should be simple, otherwise I'd just use X"), or it's wrong. Indicating the difficulty of anything has no place in any technical text.
- kazinator 3y agoSo, it's off limits in a technical text to say that, say !(!a && !b) simplifies to a || b, or anything else in a similar vein?
- abtinf 3y agoIn English, the math jargon term “simplifies to” means roughly “is equivalent to this less complex form”. It does not connote difficulty.
- kazinator 3y agoIt absolutely denotes difficulty. E.g. more machine cycles are needed to traverse the original expression tree that has more nodes.
- abtinf 3y agoYou dropped the context of the discussion. We aren’t talking about machines, but humans. That is a different usage of the word “difficulty”, meaning something requiring more work to achieve an outcome, but that is not the relevant meaning in this context. In the context of this discussion, “difficulty” is being used to describe the level of significant and sustained focused mental effort to grasp and integrate a new concept into one’s existing body of knowledge.